John Powers

Critic John Powers reviews Where to and Back, a newly released DVD trilogy from the late Austrian director Axel Corti. Written by Georg Stefan Troller, the films are loosely based on Toller's life as a Viennese Jew who took refuge in the United States as a teenager and then returned to Europe as an American soldier during World War II.

John Powers, Fresh Air critic at large, weighs in on the trends of '07: political campaigns, Iraq movies failing at the box office, HBO's The Sopranos, stories about hitting the road, the TMZing of America, jocks gone wild, hip sentimentality, the nightly ideological news, atheist chic and the writers strike.

Fresh Air's critic at large tells us why he loves the high-fashion challenge Project Runway, a reality-TV staple now in its fourth season on cable's Bravo channel. Among other things, it's one reality show that's about something more interesting than forcing its contestants to eat bugs.